Viva Aerobus Launches New Route To Cuba

On 6 July 2023, Mexican low-cost carrier Viva Aerobus launched new flights connecting Merida International Airport (MID) in Yucatán with Abel Santamaria Airport (SNU) in Santa Clara, Cuba.

The airline, which currently operates a fleet of A320 family aircraft, is fully owned by IAMSA, Mexico's largest bus company. The carrier has been operating for 17 years, having taken to the skies for the first time in 2006.

With a new weekly service from Merida to Santa Clara, Cuban passengers will have further direct access to the airline's rapidly expanding operational network in Mexico.

Photo: Viva Aerobus

The service will operate on Thursdays, with the departing flight leaving Merida at 1:20 PM and arriving at 4:15 PM. On the return leg, takeoff from Santa Clara is scheduled for 6:30 PM, touching down in the Mexican city at 7:00 PM.

Viva Aerobus in Merida

The airline first landed in Merida in 2007, with the inauguration of a nonstop connection to Monterrey International Airport (MTY). Since then, the carrier's operations at the airport have expanded rapidly, with direct flights to nine destinations within Mexico and three outside the nation.

In 2022, the airline officially denoted Merida as one of the carrier's six operating bases, where aircraft are parked overnight and staff reside.

In a statement announcing the new route, the airline described its operations at (MID) as follows:

"This base has allowed growth in its route offer. Namely, in the last year we have inaugurated routes to Querétaro, Toluca and León and even signed a tourism promotion agreement with Sefotur to boost tourism in the state during the recent Tianguis Turístico event. In this way, Viva has become the airline with the widest offer in the Yucatán capital with twelve routes."

Of the airline's connections from Merida, two already provide direct service to Cuba, with flights to José Martí International Airport (HAV) in Havana and Ignacio Agramonte International Airport (CMW) in Camaguey.

Viva Aerobus in Cuba

The carrier first flew to Cuba in 2018, with nonstop service from Cancun International Airport (CUN) to Camaguey. Since then, the airline's Cuban presence has expanded to nine routes.

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Direct flights to Camaguey are offered from both Cancun and Merida, service to Havana is operated from Cancun, Merida, Monterrey, and both of Mexico City's airports (MEX and NLU), and now nonstop connections have been established between Santa Clara and Merida, alongside a preexisting service from Cancun.